April 2017: A World Bank programme to improve information on water and sanitation services in eight Latin American countries is aligning its activities with targets under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Reporting on its Latin American programme to improve rural water and sanitation information systems, the World Bank noted that improving access to services will be essential to achieving the SDGs, including their targets on public health, education, jobs and the environment.
The programme for ‘Consolidation, Expansion, and Improvement of the Rural Water and Sanitation Information System’, which goes by the acronym SIASAR, seeks to develop information systems that will help government agencies improve water and sanitation services in rural areas. The programme is supported by the World Bank, the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and participating governments in eight countries – Brazil (in Ceará state), Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Mexico (in Oaxaca state), Nicaragua, Panama and Peru.
In the current phase, the World Bank is seeking to expand the use of SIASAR as a decision-making tool. According to the World Bank, the programme has thus far improved services for 11 million people in more than 22,000 rural communities.
Other World Bank projects on water-related aspects of the SDGs include a US$125-million project to rehabilitate and upgrade 140 irrigation dams in Indonesia, and inland water development in India. The former seeks to improve Indonesia’s water storage capacity and enhance its water security. The Dam Operational Improvement and Safety Project programme is co-financed with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), which is contributing a further US$125 million for infrastructure improvement and capacity building in dam management.
In India, the World Bank is supporting the development of inland waterway infrastructure as a cleaner and greener form of transport. The project focuses on Ganges, or Ganga, which links the seaport of Haldia to the river town of Varanasi, passing through Kolkata and Delhi. Cargo terminals, river locks and vessel maintenance facilities will be developed using a US$375 million loan from the World Bank. The project includes provision for limited dredging of the riverbed, and measures to protect biodiversity, such as turtles and freshwater dolphins. [World Bank Press Release on SIASAR] [World Bank Press Release on Indonesia Project] [World Bank Press Release on India Project]